


It Does Not Matter Big Or Small

by Elenhin



Category: The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Gen, punching bag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-18
Updated: 2013-12-18
Packaged: 2018-01-05 01:39:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1088090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elenhin/pseuds/Elenhin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This would have to be a sequel to punching bag. While discussing that story with Aramirandme81, we thought about how Axl was growing up and showing some maturity. </p>
<p>For once, Axl is the one with the clue, and as he considers Mike and Ty to be more than a little unfair, he stands up for Anders, because really someone has to. Who is the big brother or little brother does not alway matter, but everyone needs someone to stand up for them once in a while.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It Does Not Matter Big Or Small

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aramirandme81](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aramirandme81/gifts).



It Does Not Matter Big Or Small

 

Mike listened patiently to Ty, the way things had been going for him lately he felt he had the right to rant. Axl was listening too, but appeared to be distracted from time to time, and it was starting to really anger Mike how little Anders appeared to care. He was hammering away at the keyboard and only paused to drink from the vodka glass on his desk.

 

The amount of alcohol he was consuming was enough to make Mike mad, and his apparent lack of sympathy just made it worse. “Are we keeping you from something?” he asked bitingly, trying to shame his brother.

 

“Now that you mention it, it’s a bit annoying,” Anders had another swallow from his glass while Mike gritted his teeth.

 

“You are some piece of work, you know that?” the oldest Johnson brother growled more than anything else.

 

“Okay, so this is apparently important,” Anders looked up from his computer, even stood and stretched some. “Let me see if I got it all, Ty got dumped, again, which really should come as no-ones surprise. But, he’s here, whining and moaning about it and being generally depressed and miserable. Which again should not be a surprise. I fail to see which part of this demands my attention.”

 

“You could try some human compassion!” Mike half snapped.

 

“I can take him out, get him drunk and get him a girl if you want,” Anders offered.

 

“You fucking dick!” Ty spat angrily. “You think you can use women any way you want.”

 

“At least I can get them,” Anders grinned.

 

Ty who was normally a little more composed lost the will to hold on to his temper. He had wanted to vent, to really burn off his anger and frustration and Anders presented the perfect opportunity. With a cry of pure rage he threw himself at his brother. He had just time to see the fear in Anders’ eyes as his older brother took a step to the side. He was trying to reach safety, hide behind Mike and it only made Ty angrier. He put all his strength and all his anger behind the blow. It was an immense satisfaction to see Anders flying backwards.

 

The difference in weight between them alone was enough to put Anders at a serious disadvantage. Ty’s fist hit him high on the cheek, and he struck the floor hard. Landing awkwardly on his shoulder he was stunned at first. Then Ty was over him, grabbing him by the collar and yanking him up.

 

The cry that escaped him then was both fear and pain, and he raised one hand to try and protect his head.

 

“What the fuck are you doing?” Axl had been stunned at first, but now he acted. Running forward and grabbing Ty, breaking his hold of his brother so that Anders fell back down with a dull thud. He was taller than Ty, and he used that now to push him back.   
  
It didn’t feel good to hear a moan from Anders behind him as he struggled to get to his feet and failed.

 

“Let me go Axl, I’m gonna teach him a lesson once and for all!” Ty spat.

 

“Anders, why do you always have to be such a fucking idiot?” Mike demanded tiredly. Reaching down he grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet, sighing when he gave a pathetic cry.

 

“Stop it, both of you!” Axl snapped. He never really tried to boss either Ty or Mike, but this time he did. “You’re hurting him.”

 

“I’m not done with him yet!” Ty lunged forward and Axl pushed him back.

 

“Stop it!” he yelled, Anders moaned again and Axl was worried Ty had really hurt him. “Just stop it Ty!”

 

“It’s okay Axl,” Anders was leaning against the wall, favoring his arm and Axl didn’t like the way he sounded at all. “Punching bag remember?”

 

“No way!” Axl let go of Ty but stepped over to him. “That’s wrong Anders. It’s wrong, but just be quiet now, okay?”

 

“If it’s the only thing I’m good for Axl, then I might as well do it,” Anders shrugged then winced.

 

“You okay?” Mike frowned, noticing the way his arm was hanging. He stepped over to probe the shoulder and sighed. “You dislocated your shoulder bro, I’m gonna push it back.”

 

“No!” Anders gave a half panicked shriek and stumbled backwards.

 

Ty was still mad, fuming, but he wasn’t trying to get to Anders anymore so Axl released him. “Now look what you did,” he accused.

 

“Good, he had it coming,” Ty snapped and Axl bit his lip. He had no idea what to do. Ty looked like he rather wanted to have another go at Anders, and Mike looked tired and angry while Anders looked both scared and resigned.

 

“No, not good, you really hurt him,” Axl really hated getting between them. It was not easy and he wasn’t sure what he should or should not do.

 

“Anders, stop being such a fucking wimp and coward. It’s your own fucking fault, so just keep still while I push your shoulder back,” Mike sighed and Anders backed away again.

 

“No, don’t,” he pleaded, knowing how much it would hurt.

 

“I’m not gonna take you to the hospital and sit and wait for ages,” Mike told him. “It’s your own fault Anders. You have only yourself to blame, and no one here is feeling sorry for you.”

 

“Didn’t expect anyone to,” the quiet mumble came from Anders as he swallowed and cradled his arm.

 

“Come Anders, I’ll take you,” Axl glanced between Mike and Ty, then stepped over to Anders.

 

“Axl,” Mike started, but Axl cut him off.

 

“You can’t just hurt him cause you’re pissed about something. He’s not a fucking punching bag, even if  that’s what all of you seem to think. I get that Ty’s got the right to be pissed, but not to hurt Anders.”

 

“He was asking for it,” Ty defended himself.

 

“I was,” Anders agreed quietly, half leaning against Axl. “It’s okay bro. It’s not like this is something new eh?”

 

“It’s not okay!” Axl snapped. “And you have to stop pushing everyone like that. Don’t you two get it?” he spun around to face Mike and Ty. “He does this shit so you will be mad, so you will hit him, cause he figures it’s the only way he can help. He sees your mad and wanna vent, so he pushes you over the edge so you can scream and yell at him for being a dick and feel better. But it’s wrong, and you don’t have the right to hurt him. He’s fuckign well smaller than you Ty, how can you do that to him?”

 

“Axl, calm down,” Mike soothed. “Anders is old enough to know what he’s doing.”

 

“But he does not understand what he’s doing,” Axl objected. “He doesn’t understand and neither does you, and this is so fucked up and wrong.”

 

“Axl, can we just go?” Anders asked, looking so small that Mike sighed.

 

“I don’t know what the fuck you were trying to do Anders, but your shoulder is busted. We need to fix that. Now, are you gonna let me do it, or are you gonna be a fucking wimp about it?” Mike was calming down now, but he was still annoyed knowing he would likely be the one to sort out the mess.

 

“Wimp,” Anders lowered his eyes in shame.

 

“Alright fine, have it your way. I guess we don’t have a choice but take you to the hospital then,” he sighed.

 

“He’s not a wimp,” Axl glared at Mike who was actually somewhat impressed by the way he was sticking up for his brother. Axl normally wasn’t one to go against either him or Ty, and the fact that he was doing so now was intriguing. The fact that he was sticking his neck out for Anders was interesting.

 

“He is a fucking wimp,” Ty was not willing to forget his anger yet. “All Mike has to do is snap it back in place. But he’s figuring if he goes to the hospital we’ll be feeling sorry for him. He’s fucking manipulating you Axl, and you don’t get it.”

 

“Well, you don’t have the right to hurt him!” Axl spat angrily and Mike decided it was time to intervene.

 

“Axl, look you don’t have to do this for Anders. You don’t have to stick your neck out or back him up or anything, it’s not your job to look out for him in anyway, okay?”

 

“Then who the hell is gonna do it?” Axl demanded. “You’re not doing it, and Ty just busted up his shoulder and hurt him.”

 

“Axl.”

 

“It’s not your job Axl,” Mike stated again. “Anders is older than you.”

 

“And you’re older than him, and you let Ty do it,” Axl accused.

 

“Axl.”

 

“I’m just trying to make you see that if he’s going to act like an idiot, it’s not your job to fix it,” Mike tried.

 

“Then who’s job is it, becuase he don’t have anyone else!” Axl snapped.

 

“Axl!”

 

Both turned to look at Anders, surprised by the outburst.

 

“Just leave it Axl, Mike is right, my own fucking fault. Don’t take any crap for me. Don’t get involved Axl, it’s fine and it doesn’t matter. This isn’t anything new, and it’s usually my fault, so don’t do this. Don’t put yourself in the middle of this shit trying to look out for me.”

 

“But there is no one else,” Axl insisted again. “And I’ve been a dick too, taking shit out on you, but I don’t care if you made Ty angry anymore. He does not have the right to hurt you, and I don’t either. And how can you call him a wimp?” he demanded of Mike. “I remember when that P.E. teacher in school tried to put his shoulder back, how can you call him a wimp after that?”

 

“Oh fuck, I forgot,” Mike could happily have kicked himself. Anders and contact sports was not a good idea, and he had dislocated his shoulder. A somewhat over enthusiastic teacher had decided he could easily slip it back in place again, and had failed miserably. Anders shoulder was something of a weak spot even before that, it was not the first time he dislocated it, but after the idiot manhandled it, it was harder to slip the joint back in place. Of course Anders would not let him do it, and it did not make him a wimp at all. Trying and failing would not only be extremely painful but might damage the joint more.

 

Now he looked at Anders, noting the way he stood, the way he almost seemed to try to hide and the fierce way Axl was standing in front of him. Ready to take on anyone who dared harm his brother.

 

“Okay, for the record, you’re still a dick Anders, but not a wimp. We’ll get you a sling and take you to have that shoulder looked at, yeah?”

 

“I’m not going anywhere with you,” Anders mumbled. Axl had pulled off his shirt, wrapping it once around Anders wrist before reaching up to tie the sleeves behind his neck.

 

“Fine, I’m sorry,” Ty sighed. He was a little calmer now, and seeing the dejected look on Anders face was not something he enjoyed. “I shouldn’t have done that, and I’m sorry.”

 

“It’s fine,” Anders shrugged and Ty suddenly realized what Axl had been trying to tell them.

 

Anders sometimes angered them simply to let them burn of frustration, something they used to hurt him. Anders did this becuase it was the only thing he knew how to do. Anger people and let them be mad at you, because Axl was right. He did not understand what he was doing or why it was so very wrong. Both for his own sake and for theirs, it was wrong. It did not really help anyone, and Anders was not the only one hurt by it. The problem was Anders really thought he was doing them a favour by doing it. He thought he was doing something good, and that was probably the worst part of it.

 

“Oh for fucks sake Anders,” he sighed as he watched Axl help his big brother out.

 

“We are going to have to deal with that,” Mike sighed.

 

“I can’t believe Axl got it before we did,” Ty shook his head.

 

“I think they had a ‘talk’ about it not long ago,” Mike mused. “Anders had some very interesting bruises there. Looked about right for that sort of discussion.”

 

“How can he be so fucking stupid?” Ty  gritted his teeth. “How the fuck can he think that helps anyone?”

 

“Ander is clever when it comes to scheming, but he’s shit at stuff like this,” Mike mused. “He can manipulate people, but this bit, he don’t get at all. And we’re gonna have to find a way to put a stop to this shit, when they get back. Right now, it’s probably better to leave them alone. Axl’s growing up for once I think he can handle it.”

 

“He really is, isn’t he?” before he had been angry, now Ty found himself smiling.

 

“That’s the weirdest part,” Mike grinned. “Anders being an idiot seems  to make Axl grow up a bit more.”

 

“But why does everything good Anders ever tries to do have to end with him getting hurt in some way,” Ty demanded and Mike could only shake his head. He did not know, but they would have to try and change that.

 

He hoped they could and that it wasn’t already too late.

  
The End

 

Please comment, the Cricket is hungry.... 


End file.
